EAU's Ethics Improve Mate Selection

By john - Posted on 16 January 2010

A recent study
conducted by cognitive scientist Peter Todd and his colleagues from
Europe confirms the adaptive value of EAU's Statement of Ethics. The
study confirms stereotypes about mate selection: men pursue women who
are physically attractive, and women pursue men who can provide
security.

Certainly, such stereotypes often fall by the wayside for people
whose transcendant values are deep-rooted, and ideas regarding what
constitutes attractiveness and security will vary based upon philosophy
and experience. In addition, the EAU membership are among the most
perspicacious and least superficial subset of our folk, so you won't
find any emulating Anna Nicole or Hugh Hefner. Nevertheless, our
ethical underpinnings concentrate on each member realizing his or her
greatest potential in every respect, which automatically enhances their
value as mates.

"... we expect our members to set a positive, productive example
for their family and community in all of their manners and behaviors,
including the maintenance of their physical appearance and their choice
of acquaintances and personal habits; we expect our members to advance
their education or employment in such a way that will enrich themselves
and, by extension, benefit the organization and our people ..."

The full study will be reported in the upcoming edition of
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. In preview, Indiana
University's Peter Todd states:

"While humans may pride themselves on being highly evolved, most
still behave like the stereotypical Neanderthals when it comes to
choosing a mate.

"Evolutionary theories in psychology suggest that men and women
should trade off different traits in each other, and when we look at
the actual mate choices people make, this is what we find evidence for.
... Ancestral individuals who made their mate choices in this way --
women trading off their attractiveness for higher quality men and men
looking for any attractive women who will accept them -- would have had
an evolutionary advantage in greater numbers of successful offspring."

"For Todd's study, 46 adults in a speed-dating session were also
asked to fill out a questionnaire beforehand assessing themselves and
their ideal mate according to evolutionarily relevant traits, such as
physical attractiveness, present and future financial status, health
and parenting qualities.

Not surprisingly, Todd said, participants stated they wanted to
find someone who was like themselves -- a socially acceptable answer. But
once the sessions began, the men sought the more attractive women and
the women were drawn to material wealth and security, setting their
standards according to how attractive they viewed themselves.
Furthermore, while men on average wanted to see every second woman
again, the women wanted to meet only a third of the men again."

The results of this study demonstrate the importance and utility of
the EAU Statement of Ethics for our members. EAU members are encouraged
to make the most of their innate abilities and talents in every aspect
of their lives -- physically, educationally, morally, materially. Be
the best you can, in every way you can -- life demands nothing less.

This process of self-overcoming maximizes each member's value in
the mating marketplace. For those of us who are married, it increases
our value to our respective spouses and families and thus decreases the
risk of divorce. When you are the best you can be, you will attract the
best into your life.